Which parties qualified for the Duma elections? Elected

On September 18, a single voting day was held in Russia, Russians elected deputies to the State Duma according to party lists and single-mandate constituencies, as well as deputies to local government bodies. Turnout in this year's elections was a record low; based on the results of processing 93% of ballots, it was 47.81%. Rain looked into the voting results.

What happened to the State Duma

• Only four parties were able to enter the State Duma - United Russia (54.42% of the votes), the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (13.52% of the votes), LDPR (13.28% of the votes) and A Just Russia (6.17% of the votes). The LDPR almost managed to overtake the communists; the party had a chance to take a place higher than third for the first time since 1995. “A Just Russia” experienced a large drop in the number of votes cast for the party in these elections: against the backdrop of protest activity in 2011, it gained 13.24%. United Russia received a little more than 49% of the votes in the last elections.
• As a result of the voting, United Russia received 343 mandates (140 on party lists and 203 in single-mandate constituencies) and a constitutional majority in the State Duma. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation will have 42 mandates (34 on party lists, seven on single-mandate), the LDPR will have 39 mandates (34 on party lists and 5 on single-mandate), and A Just Russia will have 23 mandates (16 on party lists, seven on single-mandate). For comparison, according to the results of the elections in 2011, United Russia received 238 mandates.
• According to the law, those parties that receive 3% of the votes receive budget funding in the amount of 110 rubles, multiplied by the number of votes cast for this party. In 2011, such a party was Yabloko, the party was entitled to almost 248 million rubles. In these elections, the party was unable to repeat the previous result and received only 1.85% of the votes. The closest result to the three percent barrier was for “Communists of Russia” - 2.35% of the votes. According to the results of the draw at the Central Election Commission, they took second place in the ballot with similar name and an almost identical emblem to the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, which could bring them additional votes.
• Well-known opposition candidates were never able to get into the State Duma. Dmitry Gudkov, who ran for Yabloko in Moscow in the Tushinsky district, could not beat the leader, Gennady Onishchenko. Lev Shlosberg, who also ran from Yabloko, but in the Pskov district, did not even make it into the top three. Maria Baronova, who, with the support of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, ran for the Central District of Moscow, also did not make it into the top three. Her main competitor, Andrey Zubov from PARNAS, took third place in the district.

Reports of violations

• Pamfilova called these elections the most transparent, but there were reports of violations. On the map of the “Voice” movement, for example, more than 400 messages are indicated in Moscow, in St. Petersburg and Samara - more than 200, in Saratov - almost 100. The Investigative Committee has already investigated the fact of election fraud at a polling station in Rostov-on-Don, and in Dagestan there is even one of the sites.

Single-member districts

• “United Russia” won in 203 single-mandate constituencies out of 225. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation and “A Just Russia” won seven each, and the LDPR won in five constituencies. “Civic Platform” and “Rodina” each had one victory in single-member constituencies. In most cases, parties did not face competition from United Russia.
• In 18 single-mandate constituencies, United Russia did not field strong candidates. The heads of key committees and her supporters from other parties remained. United Russia vacated two seats for small parties: the leaders of Rodina and Civic Platform, Alexei Zhuravlev and Rifat Shaikhutdinov. In Adygea, Vladislav Reznik decided to run not from United Russia, but as a self-nominated candidate after the Spanish prosecutor's office put him on the international wanted list on suspicion of involvement in organized crime.

Regional elections

• Elections to 39 regional parliaments were also held on a single voting day. Most of them will have four parliamentary parties, but in some regions other political forces have also entered the legislative assemblies. Members of Yabloko entered the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg and the Pskov region. Also, the “Growth Party” entered the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly.
• The heads of the region were also elected on September 18. In all regions, the governors who were the acting heads of the subjects won. In the Chechen region, Ramzan Kadyrov won a preliminary victory; in the Tula region, former presidential security guard Alexei Dyumin won. In Komi, Sergei Gaplikov won, in the Tver region - Igor Rudenya, a native of the special services, in Ulyanovsk region- Sergey Morozov, in Tuva - Sholban Kara-ool, in the Trans-Baikal Territory - Natalya Zhdanova.

Photo: Kirill Kallinikov / RIA Novosti

Moscow, 09/18/2016

Russian President V. Putin and Russian Prime Minister, Chairman of the United Russia party D. Medvedev at the headquarters of the party that won the elections on the night after the vote

Press service of the Russian government/TASS

Constitutional majority

"United Russia" will receive 343 mandates (76.22% of seats) in the State Duma of the seventh convocation, in accordance with the preliminary election results, TASS reports with reference to the Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation receives 42 mandates (9.34% of seats), the Liberal Democratic Party - 39 mandates (8.67% of seats), A Just Russia - 23 mandates (5.11% of seats). Representatives of Rodina and the Civic Platform, as well as self-nominated Vladislav Reznik, elected in single-mandate constituencies, each receive one mandate. In most residential districts, United Russia or representatives of other parliamentary parties won.

After the four parliamentary parties of the new Duma, in fifth place according to the election results, TASS previously reported, are the Communists of Russia with 2.40% of the votes. Further votes between the parties were distributed as follows: Yabloko - 1.77%, Russian Party of Pensioners for Justice - 1.75%, Rodina - 1.42%, Growth Party - 1.11%, Greens - 0, 72%, "Parnas" - 0.68%, "Patriots of Russia" - 0.57%, "Civic Platform" - 0.22% of the votes, "Civic Force" - 0.13% of the votes.

By the end of the count, United Russia had greatly strengthened its position compared to midnight. Then, according to Exit-poll data provided by VTsIOM, United Russia gained 44.5%, the LDPR was in second place (15.3%), the Communist Party of the Russian Federation lagged behind (14.9%), A Just Russia had more than later (8, 1%). The turnout was about 40%, but then increased significantly: after processing 91.8% of the protocols, the turnout was 47.9%. Zyuganov’s words, said shortly after the vote count began, that “two thirds of the country did not come,” were not confirmed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev arrived at the United Russia election headquarters at night.

“The result for United Russia is good,” said the Russian President. "We can confidently say that the party has achieved good result“Won,” Putin said.

According to estimates by the head of VTsIOM Valery Fedorov, United Russia, taking into account single-mandate constituencies, can receive 300 mandates. "United Russia will have about 300 mandates, maybe even more. This is a constitutional majority. Some want 66%, some 75%, everyone has their own criteria for problems. I think that everything above 44% (according to party lists - ed.), this is definitely a very big success for United Russia. Let’s see whether our forecasts are confirmed or not,” Fedorov said on Life.

The forecast of more than 300 mandates is fully confirmed. Data on single-mandate constituencies at 9.30 am Moscow time were still incomplete, but already quite eloquent. United Russia continued to lead in 203 of the 206 single-mandate constituencies in which it nominated candidates, TASS reported.

The party, obviously, again has a constitutional majority, which United Russia did not have in the previous Duma. Let us remember that she was elected only from party lists (according to the 2004 legislation). “Candidates from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and A Just Russia win in seven districts each, five are retained by the LDPR. Leaders of Rodina Alexey Zhuravlev and Civic Platform Rifat Shaikhutdinov win in their districts.

A number of violations were recorded during the elections. The incident in the Rostov region was considered the most significant.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs confirms the facts of ballot stuffing at polling stations in Rostov region, reports TASS.

As First Deputy Head of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs Alexander Gorovoy stated, facts of ballot stuffing at polling stations No. 1958 and No. 1749 have been documented.

Victory of strong statehood

But, according to political scientist Dmitry Orlov, administrative mobilization is becoming a thing of the past. United Russia was helped by primary mobilization - primary elections in the spring, and the thesis “together with the president.” A very significant factor in favor of United Russia was Putin’s meeting with its activists shortly before the elections and his statement that he created this party.

Although the company is described as boring, according to the political scientist, this is not the case thanks to the meaningful struggle in single-mandate constituencies, where many new faces with specific programs were nominated.

The LDPR responded to the social request better than the Right Russia, also drawing back the votes of the nationalists. Traditionally, in times of crisis and uncertainty, this party improves its results, noted Dmitry Orlov.

It is interesting to look at some of the estimates that analysts made for Expert Online shortly before the elections. Tatyana Mineeva, vice-president of Business Russia and a member of the federal political council of the Party of Growth, noted the “strong position of the LDPR”: “The majority of the population does not believe in reforms, and the liberal democrats do not propose them,” she stated. “A Just Russia,” the public figure noted, is falling because it has failed to present a coherent political program.

The forecast of the expert of the Public Duma center Alexei Onishchenko was that the votes in the elections will mostly remain with United Russia, since their voters are those people who are united by the idea of ​​​​a stable and strong state. “They are not for virtual democratic slogans, but for state guarantees. It's no coincidence that primary elections behind " United Russia 8.5 million people voted. This is a high figure,” he noted.

Advisor to the Chairman of the Presidium of the Association of Young Entrepreneurs of Russia Denis Rassomakhin expressed the opinion that real things happening in the country are associated with the party in power against the backdrop of growing trust in state institutions, primarily in connection with the annexation of Crimea and the anti-sanctions policy.

Indeed, it can be stated that the victory of United Russia, while maintaining the presence of noticeable socio-economic problems, ideologically represents the dominance of the idea of ​​a strong, robust, guaranteeing state. The party “does not succeed in everything,” as Putin noted, but it is strongly associated with this idea. The specter of the weakening and half-life of the state does not “warm” the Russian people at all, although for some of the intellectual elites it is alluring.

Gigabytes will arrive from orbit

The successes of SpaceX's manned program should not be misleading. Elon Musk's main goal is satellite Internet. His Starlink project is designed to change the entire communications system on Earth and build a new economy. But the economic effect of this is not obvious now. That is why the EU and Russia began implementing more modest competing programs

The country was laid out in a new way

Besides eight federal districts Russia will now have twelve macro-regions. Agglomerations are recognized as the most progressive form of settlement. And each subject of the federation is assigned a promising specialization. The “expert” tried to find grains of common sense in the recently approved Spatial Development Strategy

TASS DOSSIER. Exactly six months later, on September 18, 2016, elections will take place in State Duma Russian Federation of the seventh convocation. They will take place on a single voting day in accordance with new legislative norms. The procedure is established by the federal laws “On elections of deputies of the State Duma Federal Assembly RF" dated February 22, 2014, "On the basic guarantees of electoral rights and the right to participate in a referendum of citizens of the Russian Federation" dated June 12, 2002, as well as other legislative acts.

The lower house of parliament is elected for a term of five years and consists of 450 deputies.

The TASS-DOSSIER editors have prepared material on the basic rules for electing deputies to the State Duma of the Russian Federation and some innovations of the 2016 campaign.

Postponement of election date

In 2016, for the first time, elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation will be held not in early December, but on the third Sunday of September, and will be combined with a single voting day - September 18.

The initiative to postpone the election date in the spring of 2015 was made by State Duma Speaker Sergei Naryshkin and the leaders of three Duma factions - Vladimir Vasiliev (United Russia), Vladimir Zhirinovsky (LDPR) and Sergei Mironov (A Just Russia).

Corresponding amendments to the federal laws on the election of deputies and on the basic guarantees of the electoral rights of citizens of the Russian Federation were adopted in July and November 2015. The legality of these changes, which shortened the term of office of the Duma of the sixth convocation, was submitted for consideration by the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. On June 29, 2015, the court found them not to contradict the Basic Law.

Return to a mixed electoral system

The main innovation in the State Duma elections is the return of the mixed proportional-majority system. The corresponding changes to the law on elections of deputies were adopted on February 22, 2014. Half of the deputy corps - 225 people - will be elected in single-mandate electoral districts (one deputy - one district) formed on the territory of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation.

The other half is for the federal electoral district, which includes the entire territory of Russia, in proportion to the number of votes cast for lists of party candidates. This principle of forming the legislative branch was already used in the elections in 1993-2003. Since 2007, citizens have voted only for party lists.

Scheme for dividing single-member constituencies

In connection with the change in the electoral system, on November 3, 2015, the head of state signed a law on a scheme for the formation of single-mandate constituencies. The entire territory of Russia is divided into 225 electoral districts, taking into account the borders of the constituent entities of the Federation (at least one district in each of the constituent entities).

During the division, the so-called “petal” model was used, when one district includes both urban and adjacent rural areas. Thus, big cities turned out to be divided into several electoral districts (according to “petals”) and merged with neighboring municipalities. This cut will be in effect for the next 10 years.

One district was formed in 32 subjects of the Russian Federation, two in 26, three in six subjects, four in ten, five in three. Every two more subjects are divided into six, seven and eight districts. The most big number districts were in the Moscow region (11) and Moscow (15).

Growing number of parties and new registration rules

Candidates in single-mandate constituencies are nominated by political parties or through self-nomination; in the federal electoral district - as part of the lists political parties. The ban on voting blocs has been retained.

After the adoption of amendments to the law “On Political Parties” on April 3, 2012, which simplified their creation and registration, the number of parties in Russia increased 11 times: from seven in 2011 to 77 currently. Of these, 75 can participate in elections (whose regional branches registered in at least half of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation).

Parties represented in the State Duma and regional parliaments, as well as, for the first time, those who received 3% or more of the votes in the last Duma elections, are exempt from collecting voter signatures in support of their lists. Thus, 14 parties will receive benefits: “United Russia”, Communist Party of the Russian Federation, LDPR, “A Just Russia”, “Yabloko”, “Patriots of Russia”, “Right Cause”, PARNAS, “Civil Platform”, “Communists of Russia”, Russian Party Pensioners for Justice, Rodina, Civil Power and the Russian Environmental Party Greens. Everyone else needs to collect at least 200 thousand signatures in their support (at least 150 thousand in the 2011 elections), of which no more than 7 thousand in each subject of the Russian Federation.

A party that has registered its federal list can nominate candidates in single-member districts without collecting signatures. Others, as well as self-nominated candidates, must secure the support of at least 3% of voters in the corresponding district, and if the number of voters there does not exceed 100 thousand, at least 3 thousand signatures.

Compared to previous elections, the size of federal party lists has been reduced and should include from 200 to 400 candidates (previously - up to 600). Moreover, no more than half of it can be non-party members. The list is divided into a federal part of up to 10 people (this part may be missing) and into regional groups, the minimum number of which is 35 (previously 70). The same candidate can be nominated by a party both as part of a list and in a single-mandate electoral district.

Lowering the entry barrier

In 2016, the threshold for parties was reduced from 7% to 5% of the votes of voters who took part in the elections. Candidates in single-mandate constituencies need only obtain a simple majority of votes. The rule provided for in the 2011 elections that parties receiving between 5% and 7% of the votes could also receive one or two seats in parliament has been eliminated.

New restrictions for candidates

At the 2016 State Duma elections, the so-called “criminal filter” will be used for deputy candidates for the first time. The applicant will have to provide information not only about the presence of an unexpunged or outstanding criminal record, but about all the ones he previously had.

It is prohibited for former convicts of serious or especially serious crimes to run for office: the first - for 10 years from the date of serving their sentence, the second - for 15 years.

In addition, candidates are now required to report to the CEC information about their accounts, deposits, etc. abroad, and if registered, close them or transfer them to banks located in the Russian Federation.

Reduction of observers from parties

Compared to the 2011 campaign, the number of election observers will be reduced. According to amendments to the electoral legislation adopted on February 15, 2015, one or two observers from a party or candidate are allowed to be present at a polling station. At the same time, they are given the right to take photographs and videos in the voting premises, and observers can be removed from the polling station only by a court decision.

Previously, only media representatives were allowed to film, and the precinct commission had the right to remove them. According to the Central Election Commission, the voting process in 2011 was monitored by 269 thousand observers from Russian parties. Of these, 93 thousand - from United Russia, 70 thousand - from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, 50 thousand - from A Just Russia, 33.5 thousand - from the Liberal Democratic Party, 7 thousand - from Yabloko, 6 thousand each . - from “Right Cause” and “Patriots of Russia”.

Changes to deadlines for filing complaints

It will be possible to challenge the voting results in court within 10 days after the election commission makes a decision on the results, and to appeal the election results within up to three months. Previously, a year was allotted for filing such applications in court.

At the same time, citizens can appeal the decisions of the election commission only at the polling station where they voted.

Parliament plays a significant role in the life of any state. Therefore, elections to the State Duma are of interest to both citizens of the Russian Federation and foreign observers. It is necessary that this process be legal, open, and legitimate. In previous years, there was a lot of criticism from outside. In their opinion, elections to the State Duma are being held with violations. Let's not delve into their argumentation, but analyze the order and system of the process in order to understand who is distorting the facts and trying to influence public opinion in their favor.

Appointment of elections

According to the basic law of the state, Duma deputies must serve for five years. At the end of this period, a new one is organized and approved by the Russian Federation. Elections must be announced between 110 and 90 days before the voting date. According to the Constitution, this is the first Sunday of the month after the expiration of the term of office of deputies.

In 2016, the procedure was revised at the insistence of the people's representatives themselves. It was decided to postpone the elections to a single voting day (September 18). This innovation was formalized by a special law, which was reviewed by the Constitutional Court. This body decided that a slight deviation from the basic law does not lead to serious violations. Subsequent elections will now be combined with a single voting day.

Election system

A person who goes to vote should know what exactly he has to decide. The fact is that the system itself was changing in Russia. Through trial and error we tried to find the best way. In 2016, elections to the State Duma will be held according to a mixed system. This means that half of the deputies will be determined by party lists, the second - personally in single-mandate constituencies.

That is, each voter will receive two ballots. In one, you will need to note the party that the person trusts, in the second, the personal candidate for deputy from the region. Let us note that this was the system in 1999, 2003 and earlier. The process is organized by the Central Election Commission. The commission controls the nomination of parties and candidates, their funds, campaign work and more. Any violations are recorded by this body. Legislatively based decisions are made on them.

Procedure for elections to the State Duma

Political struggle is replete with many nuances. The holding of elections to the State Duma is no exception. A special order is established by law, which cannot be violated. To take part in party elections you must:

• collect 200 thousand signatures, no more than 10 thousand in one subject of the Russian Federation;
• send the list to the CEC for verification;
• get an answer;
• if it turns out to be positive, the election campaign can begin.

The listed points have their own subtleties. Thus, signatures will be seriously checked for authenticity. To be on the safe side, the party has the right to enlist the support of more citizens than necessary. But their number should not exceed the legally established 200 thousand by 5 percent. In addition, parties previously represented in parliament are exempt from the process of confirming popular support. They don't need to collect signatures. In 2016, this right will be used by:

• "United Russia";
• LDPR;
• "A Just Russia";
• Communist Party of the Russian Federation.

There is a nuance associated with the regional reference of candidates from the party list. It should be divided into territorial groups. The successes of each are taken into account when distributing deputy mandates.

Vote

This is the most visible stage of the elections, besides campaigning. All citizens of the country who are already 18 years old on this day have the right to vote. In order to take part in the plebiscite, you must appear at a special polling station. You must have your passport with you. Having received your ballot, you need to go with it to a special booth. Voting is secret, that is, the citizen makes his choice personally without announcing it. On the ballot you should put any sign (a cross, a tick) opposite the party or candidate. Then it must be sent to a special sealed ballot box.

Elections to the State Duma of the Russian Federation are organized by the Central Election Commission on the basis of legislation. The documents used for voting are printed centrally and distributed throughout the country, that is, they try to eliminate any possibility of falsification. Polling stations are guarded around the clock for the same purpose. Only members of the commission have access to ballots. It should be noted that there is no turnout threshold set for the State Duma elections. They will be considered carried out during any activity of citizens.

Summarizing

In such a huge country, the voting result by law must be announced within ten days. Therefore, the vote counting is divided into stages to facilitate this process. A number of election commissions are created in the state: precinct, territorial, constituent entities and the Central Election Commission. The counting proceeds in exactly this order.

Precinct officers sort through the ballots, draw up a protocol, and send it to the territorial ones. They, in turn, make a summary statement, checking the accuracy of the data (correctness of formatting). Territorial commissions send their own protocols to the relevant body of the constituent entity of the Russian Federation. At this stage, the correctness of the paperwork and data collection are again checked. The final protocols are sent to the CEC. This body collects all information about the country and sums up the results.

Distribution of mandates

Since a mixed system is used, the results are summed up using a double method. In single-member constituencies, the person with the majority of votes wins. This candidate receives his mandate directly from the voters. Parties need to pass a barrier. In 2016 it was fixed at 5 percent. Those parties that receive fewer votes automatically drop out of the race. Mandates (225) are divided among those who reached the finals. The counting rules are such that the number of votes and the barrier are taken into account.

It is necessary that at least 60% of all citizens vote for parties, that is, in the aggregate, people’s preferences in relation to political organizations should amount to exactly this figure. If the leading forces as a whole gain less, then outsiders have the opportunity to join in the distribution of mandates. The commission adds parties that do not pass the threshold until it reaches the total 60% specified in the legislation. The Central Election Commission announces the winning political forces, which divide the mandates within their ranks taking into account the voting results in the regions.

The State Duma is the lower house of parliament, together with the Federal Assembly it represents the legislative power in our country. The status and powers of the State Duma are defined in the Constitution.

As a result of the Constitutional reform of 1993, this political institution exercising supreme legislative power was again established in our country after a long break (since 1917). Elections to the State Duma took place in December 1993. The powers of the Duma of the 1st convocation were exercised for 2 years transition period. IN last time The Duma was elected for 5 years.

The constitutional powers of the State Duma are not limited only to the adoption federal laws, including also giving consent to the appointment of heads of the most important government bodies, declaring amnesties, and even an initiative to remove the president from power.

Elections to the Duma are regulated not only by the norms of the Constitution, but also by the law “On elections of deputies of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly Russian Federation" The next elections to the State Duma were supposed to be held in December next year, but On July 3, 2015, deputies decided to postpone the elections from December to September. Such a decision was first discussed in 2015, when representatives of the most influential parliamentary factions proposed changing the legislation.

Postponement of elections - pros and cons

Changes to the law on elections of State Duma deputies mean a change not only for 2016, this order will continue in the future. The draft law was initiated by the leaders of United Russia, the Liberal Democratic Party and A Just Russia in May 2015. The reasons for the postponement were primarily the idea of ​​adding voting for State Duma deputies to a single voting day, which traditionally takes place in the regions in September since 2013.

Already in June, the bill was submitted to the State Duma, receiving a positive opinion from the Russian government. On July 1, the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation allowed the postponement of election day, recognizing this proposal as constitutional. It is interesting that representatives of the presidential administration, speaking about postponing the election date, distanced themselves from the initiative, leaving its adoption (or non-acceptance) to the discretion of legislators.

According to a number of political scientists, politicians and journalists, the initiative to postpone the elections to the State Duma is caused by the desire of pro-government deputies to prevent those who are not under the control of the current government from entering the State Duma opposition parties and movements (eg Parnassus).

Analysis of results single days voting taking place in Russia since 2013 shows that many voters do not take part in voting during this period. The reasons for this may be either the unfinished dacha season or insufficient interest in the elections at the local and regional level in general. As for the part of the electorate that is guaranteed to participate in the vote, it traditionally stands for United Russia, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, and the Liberal Democratic Party.

The arguments of supporters of the initiative to change the election legislation also look reasonable. Thus, Sergei Neverov, Chairman of the General Council of United Russia, explains the idea of ​​​​postponing the election date in order to new line-up The State Duma decided before the budget for next year was adopted.

The most vulnerable is the expectation of saving budget funds from the early termination of powers of the old State Duma, since the payment of compensation to deputies of the current convocation will cover the possible positive effect of savings. And the chairman of the Central Election Commission, Vladimir Churov, does not share, according to him, hopes for an economic effect from postponing the elections.

Mixed system - what are the features

The Law on the Election of Deputies of the State Duma of the Russian Federation establishes amended rules for the selection of deputies: for the first time in 2016, they will be held according to the updated system. Voters will now need to vote both on party lists and in single-mandate constituencies (225 State Duma members each).

Half of the parliamentarians will be elected from party lists. There are a number of requirements for inclusion in the party list:

• support of voters in the region (at least 3% of votes in previous elections;
• current representation of parties in the regions (in local parliaments);
• 200 thousand signatures of voters (if the party is young and does not yet have its representatives in the regions).

In general, innovations should have a positive effect on political competition - after all, parties operating in a certain region will have to compete for the necessary voter support. It is also interesting that according to the changes in

The Law on Political Parties, the registration threshold for “newborn” political parties was reduced to 500 thousand people, and the number of registered ones increased 10 times. The remaining 225 deputies will be determined as a result of elections in single-mandate constituencies. The election system for them is simple: one district - one deputy. The country is divided into districts according to several principles:

• on the territory of each region - at least one district;
• maximum equality of parliamentary representation for voters in each region;
• deviations in the creation of districts in different regions can be quite large (due to differences in population size in different parts countries).

As for the last point, it exists for the possibility of creating a single-mandate district in a subject of the Russian Federation where the population density is low, for example, Evenkia, Buryatia, although in densely populated areas there will, of course, be more districts.

Russians' opinions on the State Duma elections

Public opinion polls, in particular from the Foundation Public opinion”, show that the country’s residents are generally calm about changing the election date. As a justification for the transfer, most respondents cite cost savings (no need to spend money on single vote and elections to the State Duma), the speedy adoption of decisions by the new composition of the Duma, the preservation of political stability in the country.

At the same time, the majority of Russians are ready to take part in the vote (about 79%). As always, the most active part of the electorate is the older generation of voters.

Assessing the innovations in legislation related to the elections to the State Duma, we can say that they are convenient for the ordinary voter - he will know who exactly represents his region in parliament, and for the first time in the elections one can expect not only political competition between parties, but also personalities, politicians vying for the mandate of a State Duma deputy (including those who are not adherents of any party), and changing the election date will not have a catastrophic effect on voter turnout at the ballot boxes.

Much more important, what changes actually await the country after the convening of the Duma in 2016? Let's hope only positive ones...

• Who will you vote for in the State Duma elections?

• Vote